Empowering the Future of Women’s Politics-Emerge NJ Graduates 16

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MONTCLAIR—Politics is a world that is still considered a male-dominated landscape but that familiar landscape is beginning to change with Emerge New Jersey, a training platform that supports and helps to train women to run for political office.

Emerge NJ is changing the face of the state’s politics by identifying a pool of highly qualified Democratic candidates, a resource that has gone virtually untapped.

The program is a six-month training platform that focuses on breaking down the barriers to entry into the political scene. In a state that has not elected a lot of women, those barriers can be foreboding. Emerge levels the playing field by de-mystifying the process of engagement and connecting women to the knowledge, resources and networking needed to win office.

Emerge NJ graduated their fourth class this past June,with 16 graduates that have a goal to run for local and state office positions.

Emerge NJ spokesperson Sarah Smith said that the organization is looking for the next group of courageous women to take the next training session in the spring.

"Too often, women do not see themselves running for office-they assume they aren't experienced enough or they don't know where to begin," Smith said. "Our program gives them the tools, training experience, and endless support to change the future of politics in New Jersey,"

In the four short years that Emerge NJ has been in existence, 12 women from the program have run for political office and seven have been elected.

Kim Keyes, 2017 Emerge NJ graduate, who is currently running for Middlesex Town Council.said, “Emerge has provided information to fill the gaps in knowledge regarding how to get elected, as well as creating opportunities and a safe environment to practice skills such as door knocking,debating, and stump speeches. I'm excited to feel confident heading into my first campaign and to know that I have a network of strong women supporting me.”

Emerge NJ currently has 13 alumnae on the ballot in 2017.

In the 235 years since New Jersey achieved statehood, it has elected one woman as the state's governor, one woman as lieutenant governor, a total of five women to the U.S. House of Representatives and no women to the U.S. Senate. Of the 120 state legislators, only 35 are women, according to the Center For Women In Politics at Rutgers University.

ELIZABETH, NJ—A third anniversary of a 2014 unsolved homicide in Elizabeth is fast approaching and police are seeking the public’s help to solve it, acting Union County Prosecutor Thomas K. Isenhour said Friday.

Alonso Gordon, 39, of Elizabeth was fatally shot three years ago this Saturday.

On the evening of October 14, 2014, at approximately 10:10 p.m. police and ...

ELIZABETH, NJ –Take a walk through history at Union County’s annual civic heritage event, “Four Centuries in a Weekend: A Journey through Union County’s History” on Saturday, October 21 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday, October 22 from noon to 5:00 p.m.

Sponsored by the County Board of Chosen Freeholders, along with staff and volunteers at 35 historic ...

ELIZABETH, NJ--Over thirty retailers will be participating in a job fair on Friday, October 13, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at The Mills at Jersey Gardens in the Center Court.

Participating retailers will be hiring for multiple positions, a majority of those positions will be seasonal and part-time employees to help during its busy holiday season. For most retailers, the holiday shopping ...

ELIZABETH, NJ –The Summer 2017 season may be in the history books but the fall in Elizabeth is just heating up. There are many events scheduled in the city this month.

The Hispanic Heritage Month celebration will be held on October 10. Mayor J. Christian Bollwage will attend the Elizabeth Avenue Partnership’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration, which is being hosted by La ...

ELIZABETH, NJ –Music in the Mills, formerly Art in the Gardens, is an October celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month and is taking place all weekend long at The Mills at Jersey Gardens in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

The event features instrumental, vocal and dance performances in the Center Court of the Mall. This annual event is coordinated by the Office of Cultural and ...

ELIZABETH, NJ—The County Board of Chosen Freeholders has announced the launch of the Non-Profit Consortium Leadership Fellows Institute. The consortium’s program has a goal to develop the next generation of informed, effective executives in the non-profit sector.

The program launched with its first class of 24 recruits from local non-profit organizations with a kick off event ...

SCOTCH PLAINS, NJ--If your love of history is stronger than your fear of zombies, then mark Saturday, Oct. 21, in your calendar.

As part of the Four Centuries in a Weekend history event, the Rev. Chaz Hutchison, pastor of the Scotch Plains Baptist Church, will lead a lantern tour of one of the oldest cemeteries in the area. The tour starts at 5:30 p.m. and will run approximately one ...

ELIZABETH, NJ--Over thirty retailers will be participating in a job fair on Friday, October 13, from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at The Mills at Jersey Gardens in the Center Court.

Participating retailers will be hiring for multiple positions, a majority of those positions will be seasonal and part-time employees to help during its busy holiday season. For most retailers, the holiday shopping ...

ELIZABETH, NJ--The city of Elizabeth will be glowing with a new color this October, and it will be “Painting the Town Pink.”

To support Breast Health Awareness Month, Trinitas Regional Medical Center, the City Administration, Health Department and local associations will illuminate homes, businesses and storefronts with pink ribbons.

ELIZABETH, NJ –Music in the Mills, formerly Art in the Gardens, is an October celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month and is taking place all weekend long at The Mills at Jersey Gardens in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

The event features instrumental, vocal and dance performances in the Center Court of the Mall. This annual event is coordinated by the Office of Cultural and ...

ELIZABETH, NJ- If you own a small business you may be thinking about capitalizing on the global market to expand your company and its bottom line.

According to The New Jersey Business Action Center (BAC) it has been awarded more than $600,000 State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration to help New Jersey companies gain access to international ...

ELIZABETH--Community Access Unlimited (CAU) will be honoring Union County Freeholder Bette Jane Kowalski and Kevin Casey, the Executive Director of the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities, at its Annual Gala Dinner Dance, being held Thursday, Nov. 2, at the Newark Liberty International Airport Marriott.

CAU is a statewide Elizabeth-based nonprofit providing support programs and ...

Okay, so Meg Cabot is not high brow literature. However, she is a New York Times best-selling author who definitely has her finger on the pulse of life as a millennial. Best known for her Princess Diary books about an American commoner, Mia Thermopolis, who suddenly learns in her teens that she is the princess of Genovia, Cabot has made her ...